The Civil Society Network for Human Security

Past Events

30 Sept-1 Oct: Human Security Perspectives on Developments in the Middle East

As part of the Civil Society Network for Human Security, GPPAC, Human Security Collective and the Global Political Trends Centre (Turkey) organised a seminar in Istanbul, Turkey, from 30 September to 1 October, titled "Human Security Perspectives on Developments in the Middle East". The seminar focused on human security issues as experienced in the Middle East region, and in particular the role of Turkey in addressing these challenges. There were several panels that discussed several issues, including regional revolutions and conflicts, Turkey's response, the Kurdish reconciliation process and domestic human security challenges, and the impacts of these challenges on the region. The program can be found here.

Participants ranged from civil society practitioners and politicians to academics from different fields, mostly coming from the Middle East region. For a full list of participants and speakers (including biographies), click here. A report will be published soon.(Pictures by GPoT and Bibi van Ginkel)

10-11 July 2013: Youth, peacebuilding and development - Advocacy Events

On July 10 and 11, there will be two events involving the Youth Advocacy Team of the United Network of Young Peacebuilders (UNOY Peacebuilders), in New York, advocating for youth to play a meaningful role in peace-building, conflict prevention and conflict resolution.

July 10: the Inter-Agency Network on Youth and Development (IANYD) & Sub-Working Group on Youth Participation in Peacebuilding is pleased to announce a brown bag discussion with the United Network of Young Peacebuilders (UNOY), 12-1.30pm, at UNFPA, New York. Click here for more information.

July 11: UNOY Peacebuilders together with Save the Children will host a discussion on youth participation in peacebuilding in the Beyond-2015 agenda. Speakers include Ahmad Alhindawi, UN Secretary-General's Envoy on Youth and Edward J Flynn, Senior Human Rights Officer of the Security Council's Counter-Terrorism Committee and its Executive Directorate (CTED). Please click here for more information.

UNOY Peacebuilders is a global network of youth organizations committed to establishing peaceful societies, and a member of the Civil Society Network for Human Security. For more information about UNOY: http://www.unoy.org/unoy/

13-15 Mar 2013: Youth Consultation, Tunis

From 13-15 March there was a youth consultation with young leaders from the Middle East and North Africa region, focused on their role in driving positive change in their communities. Participants came from Lebanon, Libya, Palestine, Morocco, Tunisia, and Yemen. This forum and workshop was meant to identify key issues that help to articulate the role that the international community can play by enabling youth to be positive players in the societal transformation of their countries. It was also a place to share positive, successful evidence of contributions that young people are currently making, and gain insight into what they are doign in their own communities.

It was organised by Search for Common Ground, UNOY and Cordaid / Human Security Collective, all members of the Civil Society Network for Human Security. More information can be found here, or in the blog by Gabriella Vogelaar here.

5 March 2013: Panel on Role of Women in CVE, New York

Cordaid / Human Security Collective has co-convened with Women's Learning Partnership, Global Network of Women Peacebuilders and GPPAC, an event in New York on the vital role of women in countering violent extremism and building peace. The event took place on 5 March from 4:30 - 6:00 PM,Church Center of the United Nations(777 1st Avenue, E 44th St., New York, NY). For more details, open the information flyer here.

Following the panel, Cordaid hosted a reception to launch a new book on women and their role in countering violent extremism in Indonesia. The author, Frank van Lierde, spoke to one of the women he interviewed for his book at the launc, Mrs. Inaya Rohmaniah. "Looking For That Other Face: Women Muslim Leaders and Violent Extremism in Indonesia" will be launched on March 5, from 7:00 - 9:00 PM at the WFM office in New York. Click here for more information.

Several members of the Civil Society Network for Human Security attended an International Conference on National and Regional Counter-terrorism Strategies, organised by the UN Counter-terrorism Centre (UNCCT), on January 31 2013, Bogota, Colombia.

Lia van Broekhovenis one of the few panellists representing civil society, who discussed the relevance and best practices on national CT strategies. Find the transcript of her presentationhere, andread her blog from Bogota with personal reflections on the conference. The conference focused on developing national and regional counter-terrorism strategies based on the framework provided by the United Nations Global Counter-terrorism Strategy, to support its implementation. For more information about the UNCCT or CTITF, visit the website.

5 December 2012: Closed Transatlantic Working Group Meeting on FATF - Brussels

5 December 2012: There was a closed meeting on the Financial Action Taskforce (FATF), in Brussels. It is the continuation of a series of meetings of the Transatlantic working group that is connected to The Civil Society Network for Human Security, where organisations and partners from North America and Europe come together. The meeting is convened by Cordaid and GPPAC.

27 September 2012: Roundtable discussion on the FATF - Brussels

A roundtable discussion on the impact of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) on non-profit organizationswas held on September 27th in Brussels. The FATF is an intergovernmental policy making body that sets global standards on anti-money laundering, countering financing of terrorism and proliferation. A recent report by Ben Hayes of the Transnational Institute and Statewatch examined the framework developed by FATF and other international law enforcement bodies, and the impact of FATF's Recommendation 8 on non-profit organisations (NPOs). Recommendation 8 (R8) is on countering the threat of terrorist financing said to be posed by non-profit organisations. The report found that this Recommendation is prone to abuse by governments to clamp down on charities, and can have a negative impact on civil society. The report was presented at the meeting, and Ms. Kay Guinane of the Charity and Security Network in the USA shared the findings of a roundtable held in Washington DC on FATF R8 and ongoing discussions with State department and Treasury.

The meeting formed the Transatlantic working group, a European and US working group that is interested in critically engaging FATF and FATF delegation leaders. For more information, contact Lia van Broekhoven at lbr@cordaid.nl.

31 October 2012: Launch of the conference report in New York - Panel on women and security

On 31 October 2012, there was a panel discussion on the role of women and human security approaches to countering violent extremism, organised by Cordaid and the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict as part of The Civil Society Network for Human Security. Network members took part in the panel, including Sharon Bhagwan Rolls from GPPAC, Catherine Harrington from Women's Learning Partnership and Bondita Acharya from Women in Governance Network India.

The event launches the report "Addressing Violent Extremism: Creating Spaces for Civil Society Engagement", of the civil society side event of the UN Global Counter-terrorism Strategy Review, organized by GPPAC and Cordaid on June 26, 2012 in New York.

The event took place on 31 October 2012, from 3 to 4:30 pm,in New York. --> The venue changed last minute due to the situation caused by hurricane Sandy, and was held at the office of Global Network of Women Peacemakers - 355 Lexington Avenue New York. *Download the flyer with the details of the event here.

The panel discussed the report's findings, which includes recommendations to the UN and "10 Human Security Practices for Countering Violent Extremism", within the context of the 12th anniversary of the UNSCR 1325, on the role of women in peace and security.

26 June 2012: Global Civil Society Conference of the Network

"Addressing Violent Extremism: Creating Spaces for Civil Society Engagement", was a Global Civil Society Conference held 26 June 2012 in New York, on the occasion of the UN General Assembly third biennial review of the UN Global Counter-Terrorism strategy (A/RES/60/288). It convened the members of the Civil Society Network for Human Security and was organised by the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC) and Cordaid. The event brought together over seventy representatives from civil society, UN Permanent Missions, UN agencies, and other international organizations and foundations. Civil society representatives from West Africa & the Sahel, the Middle East and North Africa, Latin America and Central America, and South and Central Asia shared regional experiences of both terrorism and counterterrorism measures and made recommendations to the UN community to protect civil society space.

12-20 April 2012: West Africa Dialogue, Benin

This regional dialogue on preventing violent extremism in West Africa was organised by WANEP, GPPAC and Cordaid. The two main objectives were to develop civil society-led analysis of security responses to violent extremism, as well as to develop a set of region-specific recommendations on how existing approaches to security need to be altered towards a human security framework, and how civil society is best able to contribute to this. This analysis was presented in a panel discussion at the Cordaid-GPPAC side event in June around the UN General Assembly Review of the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy (UNGCTS).

Find the final report here (french). The english version of the report will follow.

20-22 October 2011: Setting up a dialogue between civil society organizations and UN entities

"Towards an effective and inclusive global counter-terrorism policy" was a global conference held in New York, convened by Cordaid and the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC) from October 20 to 22, 2011.

The conference brought together global civil society actors to develop a collaborative strategy for civil society engagement in implementing the UN Global Counter-terrorism Strategy. More than 40 participants from five continents attended, representing civil society organizations (CSOs) across a range of issues, including women's rights, conflict prevention and peace building, development, security sector reform, internet freedom, and human security. During the conference, participants engaged with UN officials from the Counter-Terrorism International Task Force (CTITF), the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED), the Sanctions Monitoring Team and the Alliance for Civilizations. The event was held in collaboration with HunterCollege, the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, the Fourth Freedom Forum and its Centre on Global Counter-terrorism Cooperation, as well as the Netherlands Institute for International Relations and the International Centre for Counter-Terrorism - The Hague.

Upcoming Events

The Peace Portal is an open platform for peace practitioners and has been founded by the GPPAC Foundation. The views and opinions expressed on the Peace Portal are that of users and do not reflect the policies or positions of GPPAC.